FRONTLINE: Token measure

Switzerland signs a multilateral convention on administrative assistance in tax matters, but will it help procure information on illicit fund flows from India to the tax haven?

Rudolf Elmer, a former banker who exposed massive tax avoidance schemes by the Swiss bank Julius Baer in 2008, said, “The white-money strategy is not going to work in practice. It is impossible
to check if every client has paid taxes in his or her home country. The most effective solution to combat money laundering is automatic information exchange, country-by-country reporting and
public registry of beneficial owners in secrecy jurisdiction. This can minimise tax avoidance by multinational conglomerates, large financial institutions and high- and ultra–high-net-worth
individuals.” The link to the Story